Sourgrass brings back fond memories of youth

Sourgrass, also known as common yellow oxalis and lemon clover, is a North American native plant that is often found in meadows, lawns or open fields, growing in both sunny places and open shade.

Sourgrass, also known as common yellow oxalis and lemon clover, is a North American native plant that is often found in meadows, lawns or open fields, growing in both sunny places and open shade. (Ernie Cowan)

ERNIE COWAN Outdoors

Youngsters who have never experienced the joy of lying in a field of wild spring grass, surrounded by the happy faces of tiny wood sorrel flowers have missed one of the best experiences of youth.

Included in that experience would be munching on the sour but refreshing stems of these tiny flowers.

The experience ranks right up there with watching puffy clouds change shape in a bright blue spring sky.

As a kid who spent more time outdoors than inside, it was an event of spring that I only came to truly appreciate in my adult years. And I would never have called these flowers wood sorrel.

To our ragtag army of rascals, those dime-sized bright yellow flowers were just sourgrass.

With tall, bare stalks that stood above the fresh grass, they were topped with bright flowers that dappled the shaded green fields. The leaves at the base are clover-like in shape.

Sourgrass was the first thing to show up after those miserable, cold and wet days that kept us cooped up for what seemed like forever. As we enjoyed the return of San Diego sunshine, the bright yellow flowers of sourgrass greeted us like splashed drops of spilled sunlight.

I rediscovered sourgrass while hiking along a damp path next to a flowing winter creek last week and it brought back such wonderful memories of my carefree youth.

I included a mention of wood sorrel in my column, and a few readers wrote to ask more about this common little opportunist.

While just about every kid who plays outdoors has enjoyed the novelty of chewing on the sour stems of this wild native grass, that’s probably as far as it goes.

This is one plant, however, where flowers, stems and leaves can be eaten. Fortunately, sourgrass is easy to identify and confirmed by a quick nibble on the stem to discover the sharp, sour taste.

Having said that, I must caution about eating anything gathered outdoors unless you are absolutely sure of what it is.

Even though they are fun to chew on and can be eaten, ethnobotanists warn that the oxalic acid that makes this plant sour is an antinutrient and can affect the absorption of calcium. For that reason, it is recommended that only small amounts be consumed.

Most often, sourgrass is added to salads for color and decoration or to add delicate flavoring.

The leaves have also been used to mix with water and honey and boiled to make a lemonade-type drink. A juicer can also be used to blend a cup of sourgrass flowers and stems with sweet apples and sparkling water to make a spritzer that is high in vitamin C and loved by kids.

Native Americans reportedly used the raw bulbs of the plant to control tapeworms, and there are accounts of it being cooked with sugar as a dessert.

It was considered by some Native Americans to be an aphrodisiac, help with sore throat or mouth sores and alleviate cramps, fever and nausea. The petals were also used to make yellow dye.

For years, hikers who know the plant have chewed the leaves as a thirst quencher. Call it one of nature’s electrolytes.

Sourgrass, also known as common yellow oxalis and lemon clover, is a North American native plant that is most often found in meadows, lawns or open fields, growing in both sunny places and open shade.

They tend to pop up quickly after good amounts of rainfall, often in gardens along sidewalks, but also in damp grassy areas under the canopy of oaks or along trails following shaded stream beds of San Diego County.

Once you’ve learned to spot them, you will have no problem finding lemon clover this spring.

On my drive home today, I noticed the bright yellow flowers of sourgrass standing above the fresh wild grass next to the road to my home on Mt. Whoville.

I just may have to go and find a soft patch of new grass dotted with wood sorrel and chew on a sour stem while watching the spring clouds change shape overhead.